Music
Tommy Cannon – This Is Me
PUBLISHED IN OCTOBER – PRE-ORDER NOW
By Tommy Cannon
with a Foreword by Robbie Williams
Tommy Cannon was half of one of the most popular comedy duos British television has ever produced. Wheeltappers & Shunters Social Club … Royal Variety Performances … Saturday night light entertainment … end of the pier during many a seaside season … the pair even made a popular feature film. In short, Cannon and Ball were everywhere.
But just who is this unassuming welder from Oldham, real name Tommy Derbyshire, whose life changed on the day he met Bobby Harper? And when you’re the straight man in the partnership, what happens when you lose your beloved best friend to Covid? You question everything: past, present and whether there’s a future.
Here, for the first time, are Tommy’s reminiscences of a tough start in life, the unexpected fame, fortune and loss of all that – and of how hard he found it to grieve
for his little mate in the red braces. Now, five years on, back on the road and doing what he does best with a huge social media following, he is ready to tell his story.
Jake Thackray – The Unsung Writer
Edited by Paul Thompson
“I would rather make people laugh, than make them do anything else…”
Hilarious, irreverent, poignant, fanciful, quirky, imaginative, original, musical. Jake Thackray was a storytelling genius who loved using words to entertain, move, surprise and provoke. While his extraordinary songs are rightly celebrated, they were not the beginning of his life as a wordsmith, nor the end. Jake Thackray – The Unsung Writer is a chance to explore Jake’s other writings: love poetry; an experimental short story; his charming script for a school musical; amusing pen portraits; his first published work; tall tales crafted for his concerts; and his acclaimed, colourful columns for the ‘Yorkshire Post’ and ‘Catholic Herald’. This entertaining collection provides fresh insights into Jake’s creativity and the development of his distinctive voice.
Paul Thompson is also the co-author of critically-acclaimed biography Beware of the Bull – The Enigmatic Genius of Jake Thackray
Pleasantly Disturbed
by Lee Stuart Evans
The late 1980s.
Robin dreams of becoming Jim Kerr, singer in the best band in the world, Simple Minds, despite having no talent whatsoever.
Fliss is a musical genius, perhaps the East Midlands’ answer to Kate Bush, if only she had more confidence.
Until rock stardom inevitably descends upon him, Robin takes a job at the local garage, where for the first time in his life he finds a sense of purpose; while Fliss, pushed by her mother, reluctantly auditions for TV’s biggest talent show and proves an instant hit.
When dozens of fast cars are stolen, old mechanic Vern recruits Robin to help him investigate suspicious goings-on at a derelict railway yard on the edge of Sherwood Forest.
It’s all a bit of a lark until somebody gets killed and Robin and Fliss find themselves entangled in a police investigation.
But does death mean the end of their romantic and musical dreams, or is it only just the beginning?
‘Alive and kicking with big laughs and an even bigger heart…’ – Patrick Kielty
‘My favourite funny writer…’ – Harry Hill
Revelations of a TV Director – Royston Mayoh
by Royston Mayoh
Beware of the Bull – PAPERBACK
(NB: PAPERBACK ONLY – CURRENTLY UNDERGOING A REPRINT)
The labour and the love seep from every page. For Old Molly Metcalfe, for Leopold Alcocks, for Sister Josephine, but mostly for yourself, if your hands aren’t too encumbered, gather a book or two for Jake…” – Jon Richardson
“A timely paean to a velvet larynxed, storytelling wonderman…” – Cerys Matthews
by Paul Thompson and John Watterson
Beware of the Bull – The Enigmatic Genius of Jake Thackray is the critically-acclaimed first biography of the late, great singer-songwriter.
Admired by Jarvis Cocker, Alex Turner and Thea Gilmore, among others, Jake was one of the greatest and most original artists of the twentieth century; a unique talent and master storyteller whose songs are full of wit, poetry, irreverence and humanity.
The book reveals a life as extraordinary as his writing: difficult upbringing in the terraces of Leeds; strict Catholic education; transformative experiences in France and Algeria; time as an inspirational, unorthodox and highly creative teacher; meteoric development as a writer and performer; subsequent discovery by the BBC; Abbey Road recordings and influence on The Beatles; fame, fortune and remarkable television career… and Jake’s rejection of it all.
It is a story of a complex, charismatic and self-effacing man whom many loved, but few understood. Beware of the Bull was written with the full support of the Thackray family. Exclusive access to personal papers has allowed for the inclusion of a wealth of rare poems, photographs and ‘lost’ lyrics.
This paperback edition comes with a new foreword by the comedian Jon Richardson, an afterword by the authors, and further appendices with author Neil Gaiman and the distinguished conductor and composer Sir William Southgate.
*Among the Daily Telegraph‘s pick of the best music books of 2022*
Paperback – 512 pages – currently being reprinted
*Postage and packing included with UK orders only. Overseas customers may call us direct on 00 44 113 225 9797 during UK office hours, or order via this site and we will then reply to quote the required amount of postage for your country
